No. 3 Yale Women Ready for No. 4 Trinity

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Wednesday, the nation's No. 4 team will host the No. 3 Bulldogs in Hartford in a showdown for the crown of Connecticut.

While Trinity is ranked No. 4 in the Jan. 13 rankings, their real spot is probably No. 5 or 6, as they fell 6-3 at the hands of No. 5 Penn, but also defeated No. 7 Stanford 7-2. Either way, the Bantams are a formidable foe and the toughest test the Bulldogs have faced since the Ivy Scrimmages. The Bantams are 9-1, but that gaudy record includes a 7-0 start to the season over opponents mostly outside the top 10 in the rankings. Trinity's strength starts at the top with Catalina Pelaez, ranked No. 5 nationally. Also highly ranked are No. 25 Ashley Tidman, No. 31 Jennifer Pelletier, No. 33 Natalie Babjukova, No. 39 Robyn Hodgson and No. 59 Chanel Erasmus.

Yale and Trinity have a long history of head-to-head matchups, with Yale dominating the recent slate. Last year, the No. 2 Bulldogs handed No. 5 Trinity their first loss of the year. Two years ago, it was No. 2 Yale against No. 3 Trinity. The Bulldogs won 6-3, but had one of the closer matches of a season in which they would eventually become the national champions.